Galápagos Islands
galapagos 1.jpg galapagos 2.jpg galapagos 3.jpg galapagos 4.jpg galapagos 5.jpg galapagos 6.jpg Introduction The Galápagos Islands or Archipiélago de Colón are a group of volcanic islands located about 972 kilometres to the West of the Ecuadorian coast on mainland South America. The islands are located at the Galápagos Triple Junction, where the Pacific, Nazca and Cocos tectonic plates meet. The intersection is unusual in having two microplates (The Galápagos and Northern Galápagos) caught in the junction, turning synchronously with respect to each other. The resulting geological phenomena results in a set of geologically young islands. The oldest islands are about 5 to 10 million years old, while the youngest are still being formed. Although much of the islands are barren and devoid of vegetation, the islands are home to a large collection of wildlife. It was during a visit to these islands that Charles Darwin came up with the theory of natural selection. The biodiversity and uniqueness of the islands have won them a place as a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Park Fees Entry fees to the Parque Nacional Islas de Galápagos cost US$100. Things to Do *Charles Darwin Research Station *Giant Tortoises *Boobies, Finches, Frigatebirds, Tropicbirds, Herons and Others *Sea Lions: Galapagos Sea Lions and Fur Sea Lions *Iguanas: Marine and Land *Sharks: Hammerhead, Galapagos, Black-Tipped, White-Tipped, Bull *Rays: Eagle Rays, Manta Rays Location *Isabela Island 00°45′39″S 91°01′22″W At 4640 square kilometres, is the largest of the islands in the group that accounts for more than half the landmass and is amongst the youngest. It hosts a group of active volcanoes with lava flows that have created natural barriers for some tortoises, leading to especially rich number of sub-species. *Santa Cruz Island 00°38′S 90°22′W Santa Cruz is the second largest island in the group (986 square kilometres) and hosts aone of the largest human populations on the islands. The Charles Darwin Research Station is located on the island, as well as the Galápagos National Park Service. Puerto Ayora, its capital, is the main urban centre on the island group, and has many amenities, including two banks. *Fernandina Island 00°22′S 91°33′W The island is the youngest and Westernmost in the group. At 642 square kilometres, it is the third largest. The island is an active shield volcano that has been erupting since 11 April 2009 *Santiago Island 00°15′S 90°42′W At 585 square kilometres in size, Santiago Island is the fourth largest island in the group. *San Cristóbal Island 00°48′S 89°24′W The fifth largest island (558 square kilometres), San Cristóbal Island, is the Easternmost island in the group, as well as one of the oldest geologically. It hosts the second airport on the islands, with flights to and from Guayaquil and Quito. *Baltra Island 00°27′S 90°16′W The island used to host the only airport in the island group. It is still the main airport, and is conveniently located near the middle of the group of islands. *Española Island 1°22′S 89°41′W Española is located in the Southeast of the island group, and is one of the oldest of all the islands at about 3 million years old. The island is slowly dying, with little or no vegetation. However, the surrounding sea has abundant fish, and the island is home to a large population of Galápagos sea lions. It is also the only nesting ground for the wave albatross. It is also home to highly-coloured subspecies of marine iguana. *Bartolomé Island 00°17′2.4″S 90°32′52.8″W A relatively young island that is only 1.2 square kilometres in size, the island is home to the Galápagos penguins, and is famous for Pinnacle Rock. *Floreana Island 1°17′51″S 90°26′03″W Named after the first president of Ecuador, this 173 square kilometre island is famed for Post Office Bay, which boasts a 200 year old post barrel that relies on other travellers. *Genovesa Island 00°19′00″N 89°57′00″W Just 14 square kilometres in size, the horseshoe-shaped island is what is left of a shield volcano, whose caldera is partially collapsed. The island is particularly good for observing various species of birds, including the frigate birds, red-footed boobies, Nazca boobies, swallow-tailed gulls, storm petrels, tropicbirds, Darwin's finches, and Galápagos mockingbirds. *Marchena Island 00°21′N 90°30′W Galápagos hawks and sea lions inhabit this island, and it is home to the Marchena lava lizard, an endemic animal. *Pinta Island 00°36′N 90°45′W The elongated island of Pinta is the northernmost of the active Galapagos volcanoes. Pinta is a shield volcano with numerous young cones and lava flows originating from NNW-trending fissures. With the area of 60 square kilometres, it was home to the last surviving Pinta tortoise, Lonesome George, until he was transferred to the Charles Darwin Research Station on Santa Cruz island in hopes that he will breed. Weather Being distant from any other land mass, the climate is largely determined by the ocean currents which bathe the archipelago. During the garua season, cooler waters from the Humboldt Current are dominant with average sea temperatures of 22°C in Academy Bay. As a result, air temperatures are cool and an inversion layer is created. The moisture evaporating from the sea is concentrated in this inversion layer and only the higher parts of islands, which intercept this layer, receive rain. The lowland areas remain dry, though cool. The variation in rainfall with altitude is a result of this inversion layer and has important consequences for the zonation of vegetation. Not only do higher parts of the islands receive more rain but this rain is concentrated on the southern and eastern slopes. The northern slopes of islands, and islands in the rain shadow of other islands, remain much drier. During the warm season, the southeast trade winds, which drive the cool currents, diminish in strength and warmer waters from the Panama Basin flow through the islands. The average sea temperature in Academy Bay rises to 25°C. The warmer waters cause the cool season inversion layer to breakup and normal convective cloud-forming occurs. The islands experience a more typical tropical climate with blue skies and occasional heavy rain showers. Currents are stronger in the months of August and September and calmer from January to April. This should be kept in mind for travellers who experience sea sickness. Also, catamarans are more stable than single-hulled vessels. Getting There & Away Most visitors fly into the Galápagos Islands to one of the two airports at Baltra Island or San Cristóbal Island. LAN Ecuador, Aerogal and TAME fly to Baltra from Guayaquil and Quito. Aerogal, Icaro Air and TAME fly to San Cristóbal from both Guayaquil and Quito. TAME also flies between Baltra and San Cristóbal. EMETEBE flies small planes between the inhabited islands, as well as overflights. Schedules are erratic. Accommodation It is recommended to visit the islands on a cruise boat, since this will save time travelling between islands. Also, most excursions from hotels will not include the more distant islands, which may offer a different glimpse of the islands (Fernandina and Española). That said, some may find sleeping at sea on a small boat difficult, and prefer to sleep on land. The top choice on the islands is the Royal Palm Hotel located on Santa Cruz island. Cruises Most visitors book tours on boats. The national park restricts the size of the boats allowed to cruise the islands. It further regulates some sites like Genovesa for example (the best islands for bird lovers) to and only boats under 40 passengers are allowed to visit there. Though the maximum size boat permitted to cruise the islands is 100 passengers, as you might imagine 100 people showing up on a beach all at the same time can be overwhelming to the local wildlife. All passengers will be divided up into a maximum group size of 16 passengers per naturalist guide. Therefore it is generally best to travel on a boat with fewer passengers (between 16 and 32 passengers is ideal). The cruise length includes the day you arrive and the day you depart the Galápagos. Flights typically arrive the islands around noon time or in the early afternoon and leave the islands about the same time. On your first day you will typically have 1 excursion and on the day you leave you may or may not have an excursion. In addition all 8 day cruises are required to visit the town of Puerto Ayora and the Charles Darwin Research. Many itineraries will combine this day with a visit to see the tortoises in the wild in the highlands of Santa Cruz. Shorter cruises will take advantage of the close proximity of the Baltra airport to Puerto Ayora and let passengers who boarded the cruise in San Cristobal leave the cruise in Santa Cruz or vise-versa. Be careful with the cheaper operators, as there have been reports of poor maintenance of boats, resulting in breakdowns and wasted time. Consider what you are paying for your flight to and from the islands and the park fee. You do not want to spoil the whole vacation just by wanting save a few dollars. Besides a trip to the islands is quite a trip of a lifetime! Category:Galápagos Islands Category:Ecuador Category:UNESCO World Heritage Site